The long game is the opposite of the short game, it means paying a small price today to make tomorrow’s tomorrow easier. If we can do this long enough to see the results, it feeds on itself. From the outside, the long game looks pretty boring:
- Saving money and investing it for tomorrow
- Leaving the party early to go get some sleep
- Investing time in your relationship today so you have a foundation when something happens
- Doing your homework before you go out to play
- Going to the gym rather than watching Netflix
The author closes with excellent food for thought:
In everything you do, you’re either playing a short term or long term game. You can’t opt out and you can’t play a long-term game in everything, you need to pick what matters to you. But in everything you do time amplifies the difference between long and short-term games. The question you need to think about is when and where to play a long-term game. A good place to start is with things that compound: knowledge, relationships, and finances.